10 Top Password Managers

Tired of being stuck in password hell? Consider these password managers that balance security with convenience.

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In 2011, IBM predictedthat in five years we will not be using passwords to access secure resources such as ATMs and PCs. Instead of entering a PIN or typing a username and password into a PC, we will simply look into a camera or speak a name into a microphone, because our eyes and voices are unique, IBM says.

[Super-strong unique passwords are pointless! Join Dark Reading Radio on Wednesday, Sep. 17, 2014 at 1 p.m. ET for a grown-up conversation about passwords with Cormac Herley of Microsoft Research.]

Biometric recognition replaces the entry point for what password managers are already doing today. Companies such as RoboForm and LastPass provide a platform that requires only one complex password to access your secure websites, credit card information and even documents that you keep inside an encrypted database. Depending on the platform, the database could be stored locally, on the company's servers or even in Dropbox.

Some password managers use browser extensions that keep your data in a local profile, syncing with a cloud server. Because the data is encrypted and transferred through a secure connection, you can be reasonably confident that your data is safe.

Other password managers keep your data on a thumb drive you carry around from computer to computer. With this approach you always know where your data is -- as long as you don't leave it in a PC and walk away.

Some products are free and charge for a mobile premium; others are subscription-based or charge single flat fee. One product, Dashlane, rewards you when you use its service by awarding points you can use to earn discounts on future purchases.

Some password managers offer two-factor authentication, requiring a smartcard as well as your password to log in. With this type of two-factor authentication, even if your password is decrypted, hackers still can't access your account -- but neither can you, if you don't have your smartcard. That's why this type of authentication is usually offered as an option; most customers prefer a less-strict password management service.

All password managers do have one thing in common: They require you to remember one complex password. But complex should not mean hard to remember; it could be a sentence, for example. If you forget your master password, after all, you can't access your data -- and since the company that developed your password manager doesn't have it, you'll have to reset all your passwords and start over.

I want to recommend Efficient Password Manager which is freeware yet very powerful. You only need to remember one password from now on. You can see more info at: http://www.efficientsoftware.net/passwordmanager/

PassVault is a easy and powerful app to manage password in a very reliable and secure way. Store in a cipher database all your passwords for Web, email, Social Media, Banking accounts, etc.- All your data is fully encrypted with a strong, password-based, government-grade 256-bit AES cipher. This way your information is protected from unauthorized access by thieves, hackers and malware.- FREE and without Ads.- Backup your database to your favorite services (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc)

The description of SplashID safe is misleading as it confuses two different products. The basic SplashID safe requires no hardware and works in a similar way to the other products described. The image and description refer to SplashID Key Safe. Though the text does also mention mobile and desktop - where it does require installation.

Like most of us, our contacts were unknowingly taken from us by many other cloud services and online offerings years ago.

I rarely see a 'Submit' button anymore, it's been made unscrupulously the 'Post' button or similar, but that's what we are doing, submitting. We submit to our greedy masters while making ourselves subservient. We get neither liberty or security. Have you seen the movie "Terms and Conditions May Apply"?

Published: 2015-03-03Off-by-one error in the ecryptfs_decode_from_filename function in fs/ecryptfs/crypto.c in the eCryptfs subsystem in the Linux kernel before 3.18.2 allows local users to cause a denial of service (buffer overflow and system crash) or possibly gain privileges via a crafted filename.

Published: 2015-03-03** REJECT ** DO NOT USE THIS CANDIDATE NUMBER. ConsultIDs: none. Reason: This candidate was withdrawn by its CNA. Further investigation showed that it was not a security issue in customer-controlled software. Notes: none.

How can security professionals better engage with their peers, both in person and online? In this Dark Reading Radio show, we will talk to leaders at some of the security industry’s professional organizations about how security pros can get more involved – with their colleagues in the same industry, with their peers in other industries, and with the IT security community as a whole.